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REUZEL

Matte Styling Paste Flexible Hold

Styler / Paste, medium-hold

  • Styler
  • paste
  • cream
  • Sulfate-free
  • Silicone-free
  • Protein-free
  • Not vegan · label states
  • Cruelty-free · brand states
Size3.38 fl oz
Price$16.50seen at one store · 3.38 oz
Price / oz$5.03/ozat 3.38 oz
Where to buy3 stores · $16.50–17.50

Scent:

The ingredient list declares fragrance. What it smells of is not stated, and we do not guess.

Listing used for research: ulta.com

Personal fit

Is this right for you?

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Lower cost than most pastes

$5.03/oz at 3.38 oz — less than 80% of the 90 pastes , which mostly run $5.59–10.34/oz.

Price and stores

Great for

Protein-sensitive hairthat stiffens when protein is added
Curly-method routinesno sulfates and no water-insoluble silicones
Curl definitionfilm formers hold a clump together
Coarse or dry hairthat absorbs everything you give it
Silicone-free routinesno silicones appear in the list
Soft-hold stylesthat should stay touchable

Maybe skip if

this product carries a scent
Oily scalp or fine hairthat gets weighed down
Stretching wash dayswaxes stay until a detergent wash removes them
Vegan and cruelty-freeour record does not support both claims here

Whether this hold level is right for you depends on your density, porosity, and how long your style has to last — that is what the consultation works out.

What the formula actually does

Read from the label, not the marketing

Each row says where it comes from: F means we derived it from this product’s own ingredient list, S means it is a claim the brand makes that the formula neither confirms nor contradicts.

Hold (as stated) Medium

A medium hold, as stated by the brand.

Hold system Mixed

Gums and synthetic polymers together.

Cast risk Unlikely

Softening ingredients sit alongside the film formers, so a hard shell is unlikely.

Weight on the hair Rich

Heavy butters and waxes in the first eight ingredients.

Oil absorption None

No absorbent powders or starches.

Oils and butters None

No oils or butters in the list.

Fast-drying alcohol None

No fast-drying alcohol in the list.

Needs detergent to remove Yes

Water-insoluble silicones or waxes: a detergent wash is what removes them.

Fragrance Present

Fragrance is listed; it sits below the working ingredients.

from the formula stated by the brand reported by reviewers Scale: 1 dot low · 5 dots high, within this product type.

Ingredients that matter

The ingredients that change a decision

The workhorse ingredients plus anything lower down that changes a decision. These chips name what an ingredient does — they are not safety scores, and no ingredient here is rated good or bad on its own.

IngredientWhat it doesWhy it mattersChip
WaterWater/Aqua/Eau solvent The base everything else is dissolved in Neutral
BeeswaxCera Alba (Beeswax) wax Holds shape and adds weight Buildup
Bis-Diglyceryl Polyacyladipate-2 emollient Softens and smooths the strand Heavy
Cetyl Alcohol fatty alcohol Thickens and conditions — not a drying alcohol Softens
Stearyl Alcohol fatty alcohol Thickens and conditions — not a drying alcohol Softens
Octylacrylamide/Acrylates/Butylaminoethyl Methacrylate Copolymer film former Lays down the film that holds a shape Holds
Ceteareth-20 emulsifier Keeps oil and water mixed Stabilizes
PEG-40 Hydrogenated Castor Oil solubilizer Keeps oils dissolved in water Stabilizes
Fragrance fragrance The scent Fragrance
What the list leaves out, and what it carriesNo sulfates, silicones, or drying alcohols. Protein-free: this is built for moisture rather than for strengthening. Contains fragrance. Contains heavier butters.
Full ingredient list (15)

US labelling rules put ingredients above 1% in descending order of amount; below 1% they may be listed in any order. Annotations keep three readings separate: the ingredient's general function, its role in this product type, and what its position can support.

  • 1 Water · Water/Aqua/Eau
    General function

    The base of almost every rinse-off and cream hair product. It carries everything else and is normally the first ingredient on the label.

    Leading ingredient

    Listed in the first three ingredients, it is likely a structural part of this formula.

    • solvent
  • 2 Beeswax · Cera Alba (Beeswax)
    General function

    A firm natural wax that grips and holds hair in place. It resists water and can take repeated washing to remove.

    Leading ingredient

    Listed in the first three ingredients, it is likely a structural part of this formula.

    May suitMaximum-hold styling

    A wax holds by staying solid on the strand, which gives grip and separation rather than a set film that cracks.

    May suitVery dry or highly damaged hair

    Forms a physical barrier on the strand that slows water leaving it. Nothing else in a formula holds moisture in as bluntly.

    May not suitBuild-up-sensitive routines

    It does not disperse in water at all: removing it means a detergent wash, and until then it stays exactly where it landed.

    • wax
    • film former
    • sealant
  • 3 Bis-Diglyceryl Polyacyladipate-2
    General function

    A rich, lanolin-like emollient used in balms for a soft, sealing finish.

    Leading ingredient

    Listed in the first three ingredients, it is likely a structural part of this formula.

    May suitFrizz-prone, damaged, or high-friction hair

    Emollients fill and smooth the surface of the strand, which lowers the friction that lifts the cuticle and reads as roughness.

    May suitVery dry or highly damaged hair

    Forms a physical barrier on the strand that slows water leaving it. Nothing else in a formula holds moisture in as bluntly.

    May not suitBuild-up-sensitive routines

    It does not disperse in water at all: removing it means a detergent wash, and until then it stays exactly where it landed.

    • emollient
    • sealant
  • 4 Cetyl Alcohol
    General function

    A fatty alcohol used to thicken creams and add slip. It softens rather than dries.

    Supporting ingredient

    Listed in positions 4–8, it likely makes a meaningful contribution alongside the formula's main ingredients.

    May suitDry, coarse, or high-porosity hair

    The waxy solid that gives a conditioner its body. It deposits a soft lubricating layer, which is most of what makes hair feel smooth after rinsing.

    May suitFrizz-prone, damaged, or high-friction hair

    Deposits with the cationic conditioners and helps them lie flat along the strand, which is where the detangling actually comes from.

    DependsFine or easily flattened hair

    Near the top of a conditioner it is doing most of the conditioning, and most of the weighting, at the same time.

    PubChem
    • fatty alcohol
    • emollient
    • thickener
  • 5 Stearyl Alcohol
    General function

    A fatty alcohol that thickens conditioners and helps them coat the hair evenly.

    Supporting ingredient

    Listed in positions 4–8, it likely makes a meaningful contribution alongside the formula's main ingredients.

    May suitDry, coarse, or high-porosity hair

    The waxy solid that gives a conditioner its body. It deposits a soft lubricating layer, which is most of what makes hair feel smooth after rinsing.

    May suitFrizz-prone, damaged, or high-friction hair

    Deposits with the cationic conditioners and helps them lie flat along the strand, which is where the detangling actually comes from.

    DependsFine or easily flattened hair

    Near the top of a conditioner it is doing most of the conditioning, and most of the weighting, at the same time.

    PubChem
    • fatty alcohol
    • emollient
    • thickener
  • 6 Octylacrylamide/Acrylates/Butylaminoethyl Methacrylate Copolymer
    General function

    A firm hold polymer used in hairsprays and gels. It holds well in humidity and brushes out.

    Supporting ingredient

    Listed in positions 4–8, it likely makes a meaningful contribution alongside the formula's main ingredients.

    May suitClimate-sensitive or frizz-prone hair

    A set polymer film is a physical barrier to humidity, so a style keeps its shape longer in damp conditions.

    May suitMaximum-hold styling

    Synthetic film formers dry into a continuous film, which is what holds a shape against movement and against humid air.

    DependsBuild-up-sensitive routines

    Some acrylate copolymers rinse with water and some need a detergent; the label alone does not say which one a formula used.

    • film former
    • polymer
  • 7 Ceteareth-20
    General function

    An emulsifier that holds oil and water together in a conditioner or cream.

    Supporting ingredient

    Listed in positions 4–8, it likely makes a meaningful contribution alongside the formula's main ingredients.

    • emulsifier
  • 8 PEG-40 Hydrogenated Castor Oil
    General function

    A castor-oil derivative that dissolves fragrance and oils into water so the product stays clear and does not separate.

    Supporting ingredient

    Listed in positions 4–8, it likely makes a meaningful contribution alongside the formula's main ingredients.

    • solubilizer
    • emulsifier
  • 9 Glycerin
    General function

    A small water-loving molecule that draws moisture into the hair and holds it there. It is the most common softening ingredient in conditioners and leave-ins.

    Secondary ingredient

    Lower in the ordered portion of the list, it is more likely playing a supporting role than defining the formula.

    May suitDry, coarse, or high-porosity hair

    High-porosity hair loses water fast; a humectant holds some of it in place for longer than the wash itself would.

    May suitVery dry or highly damaged hair

    Binds water into the outer layers of the strand, and water is what makes dry hair flexible again rather than brittle.

    DependsClimate-sensitive or frizz-prone hair

    Water moves both ways. Measured across concentrations, glycerin solutions give water up in some conditions and take it from the air in others. What it does for you depends on how much of it is there and on the air around it.

    Scientific Reports
    • humectant
  • ▾Below about this point, order stops being meaningful — these are typically used at 1% or less.
  • 10 Tocopheryl Acetate
    • antioxidant
    • vitamin
  • 11 Hamamelis Virginiana Extract
    • botanical extract
  • 12 Rosmarinus Officinalis Extract
    • botanical extract
  • 13 Urtica Dioica (Nettle) Extract · Urtica Dioica Extract
    • botanical extract
  • 14 Fragrance
    General function

    An undisclosed blend of scent ingredients. Regulations let it stay unlisted, so a fragrance-free product is the only way to be certain what is not in it.

    Estimated lower-concentration zone

    It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.

    May not suitFragrance-sensitive routines

    Declared fragrance. On a fragrance-sensitive routine this is the line that decides it, wherever it sits on the label.

    • fragrance
    • declared fragrance
  • 15 Phenoxyethanol
    • preservative

What the whole list adds up to

  • 3 emollients
  • 3 botanical extracts
  • 2 film formers
  • 2 sealants
  • 2 fatty alcohols
  • 2 thickeners
  • 2 emulsifiers
  • 1 solvent
  • 1 wax
  • 1 polymer
  • 1 solubilizer
  • 1 humectant
  • 1 antioxidant
  • 1 vitamin

Ingredient list captured 2026-08-27. Formulas change — check the package in your hand when an ingredient matters to you.

Price · 3.38 oz

Seen at $16.50 lowest of 2 stores · checked Aug 30
Good value under $17 Under $5.06/oz it costs less than three-quarters of the 8 products we score as doing the same job

Good value on sale. Some stores sell it under the $17 line; products that do this job typically go for about $27 at this size.

Show the price ladder
Where we’ve seen it4 listings · 3 stores

3.38 ozmost listedBest per ounce

  • Ulta
    $17.50
    Aug 25

Sorted by price per ounce. Dated observations from our research, not live prices. Direct store pages, no affiliate links. We don’t sell this product. and 1 listing we don’t count — grey-market or unverified sellers.

How we work this out
  1. 3.38 oz is the size stores list most often; every comparison on this page is made at it. Other sizes are shown in the Sizes row and the store list.
  2. Seen at $16.50 is the price we have observed for the 3.38 oz. We need three stores before we call a price commonly seen.
  3. Good value under $17 comes from the 8 products we score as doing the same job as this one. A quarter of them cost less than $5.06/oz; at 3.38 oz that is $17. Under that line you are paying less than most of them.
  4. About $27 is what those same products typically cost at this size — the midpoint of their prices per ounce, scaled to 3.38 oz.

Formula

Formula score
10 of 10

This formula covers the systems a paste is built around, and it costs less per ounce than most of the pastes we have researched.

How the score is counted
  • 1 products we score as doing the same job cost less per ounce
  • Costs less per ounce than 80% of the 90 pastes we’ve priced
  • Covers 6 of the 6 things a paste should do
  • Reviewers mention 2 things they like about how it performs
  • A hold systemThe polymer, gum, or wax that holds the shape.3 pts
  • Softeners alongside the holdWhat keeps a film flexible instead of brittle.2 pts
  • No drying alcohol in the first threeFast drying without leading on alcohol.2 pts
  • A humectantBinds water into the hair.1 pt
  • A humidity claim with a mechanismThe claim has a film former or silicone behind it.1 pt
  • Fragrance kept out of the top eightScent as a finishing touch, not a major share.1 pt

The formula score is completeness for the job: the share of the systems this product type is normally built around that we can find in this list, weighted. It is not efficacy, not quality, and it never compares across product types.

Does the same job, for less

Same derived functions — what it cleans, conditions, coats or holds — at a lower cost per ounce. Scent, texture and where you buy it can still differ.

AxeLowest cost per oz Axe Urban Messy Look Epic Hold Matte Hair Wax $3.03/oz $2.00/oz less
  • Protein-free
  • Curly method
  • Rich
· Close function
Function
  • Slip and detangling
Also
  • Drugstore tier
  • 2.6 oz bottle
Compare

See more alternatives in the product library

These are functional neighbours, not personal recommendations — they are close on formula, not chosen for anyone. Get the one that fits your hair, routine, and budget

Built for curly to coily hair

Final decision

Should you buy it?

A solid pick for the hair it suits
Best user

Hair that stiffens on protein, looking for a protein-free formula and a curly-method-compatible formula

Biggest tradeoff

Worth skipping for anyone sensitive to fragrance, oily scalps and fine hair, or anyone stretching time between washes

Best alternative if not

Axe Axe Urban Messy Look Epic Hold Matte Hair Wax, for similar results at a lower price

We do not sell products or take placement fees. This page states what the formula and the prices show; the consultation is what matches it to a person.

Claims check

What the brand says, against what the formula shows

Claims are quoted from the brand. We only mark one supported, partly supported, or conflicting when the ingredient list actually speaks to it; everything else stays "stated by the brand", which is not a criticism — most claims simply cannot be read off a label.

1
SupportedBacked by ingredients
1
Partly supportedSome supporting logic
1
Stated by brandNo clear evidence
0
Potential conflictFormula works against claim
6/10 hold (Medium/Pliable Hold)

Synthetic hold polymers are present.

  • Beeswax
  • Octylacrylamide/Acrylates/Butylaminoethyl Methacrylate Copolymer
Supported

Structure that lasts the day.

1/10 shine (Matte, no shine)

Nothing in the list reads as a shine system.

  • Beeswax
  • Bis-Diglyceryl Polyacyladipate-2
Stated by brand

Can’t be confirmed from label.

seals in moisture, smooths frizz

Humectants and emollients are present, but lower in the list than the claim implies.

  • Bis-Diglyceryl Polyacyladipate-2
  • Cetyl Alcohol
  • Stearyl Alcohol
Partly supported

Some hydration, at a low level.

How to read this

We look at the first 10–15 ingredients and what they do in a formula — not marketing. If the list doesn't speak to a claim, we don't assume.

Reviewers

What people report

Recurring themes our researchers wrote in their own words from sourced reviews. We do not store or scrape star ratings.

Described as lightweight with a decent hold that layers well with other products

general Ulta reviewer

Praised for a natural, non-heavy look that suits fine or thick hair alike

general Ulta reviewer

One reviewer found it tacky when used alone and preferred it mixed with another product or on shorter hair

general Ulta reviewer

Generally recommended for all-day style maintenance despite only moderate hold strength

general Ulta reviewer

More from REUZEL

How this page was made

  • Everything above is generated from our researched product record — identity, the ingredient list as printed, the brand's own claims, dated price observations, and review themes written in our researchers' own words. No part of this page is written per product.
  • The value band is a fixed label over two stored numbers: this product’s cost per ounce as a percentile of every product of this type we have priced, each at the size it is most often sold in, and how many products we score as doing the same job cost at least a quarter less per ounce.
  • Both scores out of ten are defined on this page. The formula score is completeness for the job, computed from a fixed per-format checklist shown beneath the gauge; the price score is cost per ounce against every product of this type we have priced.
  • The "Is this right for you?" panel reads only your own consultation answers, and it applies exactly the filters our recommendation engine applies. It is computed when you load the page and is never stored on it.
  • 2 sources consulted for this product (1 manufacturer or regulatory, 1 retailer, 0 editorial), last checked 2026-08-27.
  • Ingredient references are linked for 3 of 7 product-aware annotations on this page. Fit notes are conditional formulation guidance, not a conclusion about the finished product or about you.
  • We have not tested this product in a lab and we do not physically test your hair. Formula readings come from the ingredient list; behaviour claims are labelled as the brand's.
  • Ingredient order tells you relative amount only above roughly 1%. Prices are observations on the dates shown and change without notice.
  • Ingredient names link to our ingredient library, where each entry shows what it does, which product types use it, and where it usually sits on a label across everything we have researched.
  • This is cosmetic information, not medical advice, and nothing here diagnoses or treats a health condition.
  • Formula readings: derivation v22. Record last updated 2026-08-27.

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